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Degenerative Disc Disease
Enjoy a pain free life
Degenerative Disc Disease is a common spinal condition in which the intervertebral discs in the spine gradually deteriorate. It is a gradual process that affects the structural integrity of discs.
As people age, disc moisture decreases, resulting in discs that may shrink, wrinkle, and even crack. These disc changes allow vertebral structures to compress, resulting in less space for nerves to exit the spinal column.
Causes of Degenerative Disc Disease
Degenerative disc disease is usually caused by aging: over time, the discs become dehydrated and contract.
Arthritis and osteoarthritis can also contribute to its onset by placing greater pressure on the discs, thereby increasing the risk of a rupture.
Degenerative joint disorders can have the same effect.
Symptoms of degenerative disc disease
While many patients don’t initially experience any noticeable symptoms of degenerative disc disease, the most common include slight to severe pain in the neck and upper back, numbness or tingling in the shoulders or arms, and muscle spasms.
Disc degeneration that affects the lumbar spine can cause low back pain (referred to as lumbago) or irritation of a spinal nerve to cause pain radiating down the leg (sciatica)
These symptoms may be exacerbated by sitting down, or by bending or twisting the spine.
Diagnosing Degenerative Disc Disease
The doctor can sometimes detects signs of irritated nerves during the examination. Increased radiating pain when the lower extremity is lifted supports the diagnosis of degenerative disc disease.
Nerve testing (EMG/electromyogram and NCV/nerve conduction velocity) of the lower extremities can be used to detect the nerve irritation.
Health care professionals can visualize degenerative disc disease using X-ray imaging of the spine, CAT, or MRI scanning. The actual disc herniation can be detected with radiology testing, such as CAT or MRI scanning.
Treatment of degenerative disc disease
Treatment for degenerative disc disease in the neck is generally conservative. Indeed, most of its symptoms can be alleviated or eliminated with some simple lifestyle adjustments.
Your physical therapy regimen will most likely entail regular massaging of the muscles in the neck and upper back (to keep them from further compressing your spine), along with strengthening exercises that engage the muscles supporting the spine.
These exercises will help eliminate the pressure on your joints and increase space between them, reducing inflammation. If necessary, anti-inflammatories can alleviate pain as you work to rehabilitate your spine.
Better health, better life
Surgical treatment of degenerative disc disease
Degenerative disc disease rarely requires surgical intervention, but in more severe cases, surgery can restore stability to the spine.
Should it be necessary, your spine surgeonin Kenya at NSOC can perform a procedure tailored to your condition: most commonly, they would either perform a discectomy (removing the damaged disc), joint reshaping, or nerve decompression in the spinal canal.
